1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to vehicle lights, and in particular to a multiple light system for watercraft.
2. Description of the Related Art
Light systems are well-known and various types have heretofore been devised for meeting the requirements of particular lighting applications. For example, vehicles of various types typically have lighting systems for specialized purposes associated with their operation. Such purposes can include collision avoidance, for which many vehicles carry running lights of various configurations so that they are clearly visible to other vehicles.
Such light systems may be required for vehicle operation. For example, maritime regulations, such as those promulgated by the U.S. Coast Guard, specify the location, size, output and color of watercraft running lights. Such regulations tend to provide a degree of uniformity in watercraft lighting whereby watercraft operators can more quickly recognize other watercraft at night and take appropriate measures to avoid colliding with them. Hence, by regulation watercraft operated at night are required to display a bow light with a red light on the port (left) side and a green light on the starboard (right) side so that observance of such a light from other watercraft provides an indication of the direction of travel.
Other types of watercraft lighting systems serve different purposes, e.g., to illuminate areas external to the watercraft. Heretofore, relatively high output lights have been provided on the bows of boats to function in a manner similar to headlights on a road vehicle. However, Coast Guard regulations restrict the use of such lights to avoid impairing the vision of other watercraft operators.
Search lights and floodlights have also been mounted on watercraft, but typically they are intended for more general purposes as opposed to illuminating the area directly ahead of a boat. Lighting can become important in docking a boat and in launching and retrieving a boat with a trailer at a loading ramp. In the case of recreational watercraft which are often trailered to and from the boat loading ramps at public marinas, retrieval operations onto trailers after dark are fairly common. However, problems can arise with docking and trailer-loading operations due to the inadequacies of most navigation lights in providing sufficient illumination. Such operations could often be accomplished more safely and efficiently with adequate bow lighting, provided such lighting could be activated independently of the bow navigational or running lights in order to comply with Coast Guard regulations and to avoid obscuring the visibility of the bow navigational light.
The bow areas of many boats can be limited in space for mounting additional equipment, such as lighting systems. For example, recreational watercraft often have trolling motors, individual seats for fishing, etc. mounted in the bow areas thereof. Moreover, such equipment may have to be removed in order to place a cover over a boat for protecting it during periods of non-use. For this reason the red/green bow navigational lights of many watercraft are often mounted on removable masts or standards to facilitate covering and storing the boats during periods of non-use.
Therefore, an effective watercraft docking light should not interfere with the boat navigation lights, should be out of the way of other equipment and should provide effective illumination of an area in front of the boat. The present invention address the aforementioned problems related to watercraft lighting systems. Heretofore there has not been available a multiple lighting system for watercraft with the advantages and features of the present invention.